We, as a society, have become so afraid of cops...cops have made us conditioned us to be so nervous around them that 86 year olds are now having heart attacks when pulled over by one.

If cops were the public servants they are supposed to be, to protect and uphold the law, instead of being the scary bullies that can ruin our days, lives, by sticking us in jail on their whim, we might not fear them nearly as much.

AgentPothead:Kind of feel like the stress of being pulled over is what caused the heart attack in the first place. Not sure he would have still had one if he wasn't pulled over.

This is exactly why I get pissed reading about the (rare) stories where cops do "goodwill" projects like pulling people over and giving them giftcards during the holidays. I know it's supposed to be heart-warming or whatever, but it still involves scaring the hell out of people for no reason.

I was involved in a single-vehicle crash due to a life-threatening medical emergency.

The cop made sure to follow the ambulance right to the ER to ensure she could give me a careless driving citation once I recovered consciousness.

It cost me $800 in legal fees to get the case kicked out because I essentially wasn't at fault (but would have cost me much more in insurance for several years - apparently most insurers won't even look at you if you have one careless charge on your record)

The cops around here are told they cannot let anyone off with a warning - they MUST issue a citation every time they get their fat ass out of their cruisers, or they get shiatty performance reviews from their bosses.

I think the fact that traffic ticket paralegals are ALL ex-cops also has a lot to do with it.

dukeblue219:This is exactly why I get pissed reading about the (rare) stories where cops do "goodwill" projects like pulling people over and giving them giftcards during the holidays. I know it's supposed to be heart-warming or whatever, but it still involves scaring the hell out of people for no reason.

Yeah, jeez. I'd be strongly tempted to refuse it under those circumstances. Goodwill, my ass.

I was involved in a single-vehicle crash due to a life-threatening medical emergency.

The cop made sure to follow the ambulance right to the ER to ensure she could give me a careless driving citation once I recovered consciousness.

It cost me $800 in legal fees to get the case kicked out because I essentially wasn't at fault (but would have cost me much more in insurance for several years - apparently most insurers won't even look at you if you have one careless charge on your record)

The cops around here are told they cannot let anyone off with a warning - they MUST issue a citation every time they get their fat ass out of their cruisers, or they get shiatty performance reviews from their bosses.

I think the fact that traffic ticket paralegals are ALL ex-cops also has a lot to do with it.

That brings to mind an oldie but goodie from NWA.

My cool Maine cop story: After swilling scotch at the halfway point of our return from camping, a friend and I got pulled over by a state cop. Waving aside the smoke from the giant Bob Marley spliff we had been smoking he asked why my friend had been speeding. He went into a long rambling Hunter Thomson story about a Cadillac that had been in his blind spot, before trailing off like Keith Richards into a drugged mumble. He let us go with a verbal warning.

Long story short. I was a silly college kid. Got pulled over. Cop realized I was drinking. Went back to his cruiser. Came back with a stern warning that I walk home (was only 10 blocks away at the point) and sped off with his sirens on.

So you're basically saying that we have to pick between tyranny and anarchy and that you'd prefer anarchy. How about neither? If you're really that fond of the idea, there are some pretty nice beaches near Somalia where you can relax while you enjoy your total absence of rule of law.